


Udon for the Drifting Warrior

by NatsuoftheDawn



Series: The RNG of Ritsuka's Summons [1]
Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms, 異世界食堂 | Isekai Shokudou | Restaurant to Another World (Anime)
Genre: Author Is Sleep Deprived, Comfort Food, Cooking, Crossover, Fantasy, Fantasy Restaurants, Fluff, Food, Food for the soul, Gen, Isekai, Not Beta Read, One Shot, Restaurants, Sorry Not Sorry, graphic description of cooking, if you get hungry because of this welcome to my world, obscure crossover nobody asked for, ritsuka makes a brief appearance, ritsuka's gender is ambiguous
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:34:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25726750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NatsuoftheDawn/pseuds/NatsuoftheDawn
Summary: Look who's coming to dinner!Alternatively; Musashi's high standards for udon are about to get so much higher.(You do not need to know Isekai Shokudou to enjoy reading this. ELI5 inside)
Series: The RNG of Ritsuka's Summons [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1866136
Comments: 9
Kudos: 24





	Udon for the Drifting Warrior

**Author's Note:**

> haha musashi brainrot go brrrrrr
> 
> Anyways, welcome to yet another one-shot I had cooking up, heh. It seems pretty coincidental how it's going live between NA's 3rd Anniversary and JP's 5th Anniversary. I can't remember what spurred me to write this...maybe because I was picking up the Isekai Shokudou anime and, once again, got hungry from all the food. That along with Yuru Camp never failed to make my mouth water. I've been meaning to pick up the light novel since it got officially localized, but I'm afraid I'll get hungry again ;_;
> 
> ELI5: The plot of Isekai Shokudou is about a seemingly normal restaurant called Western Restaurant Nekoya that serves both Japanese and Western-style foods. It's closed on holidays and weekends. What's not normal about it is that it's actually open on Saturdays, but on that day it becomes a doorway to another world inhabited by your typical fantasy creatures: Elves, dragons, wizards, lizardmen, etc.  
> Our main character is the owner of the restaurant who has no name but is referred to as Master or Owner (voiced by Emiya and Siegfried's VA, Junichi Suwabe) as you would in an actual restaurant in Japan. Everyone calls him Master, so prepare for that confusion. His waitress is Aletta (VA: Sumire Uesaka. While well known, she has no role in FGO yet), who is a demon girl that could pass as a human if it wasn't for the goat horns in her hair. She specifically works on Saturdays. There's another waitress that works there, Kuro (VA: Saori Onishi. Also well known but has no role in FGO yet), but I just got to that episode that she first appears in so I don't know much about her. In my opinion, I think this story works best with just Master and Aletta working.
> 
> Hopefully, my ELI5 helped. I added who the VAs are so you can have a sense of what they sound like. I also recommend watching the anime but have a snack at hand just in case. Anyways, enjoy!

As his late grandfather once told him, _”You’ll never know who’s going to come through that door that day.”_. He remembers those words, especially when it rang true when he took over _Western Restaurant Nekoya_ after his grandfather’s passing. For the past ten years, the new Master of the establishment thought he saw everything there is in the other world. 

Today was an exception. 

It started off like every other Saturday. The typical wave of customers came and went. His otherworldly waitress, Aletta, was hard at work keeping up with the barrage of orders being thrown at her while the Master kept up with the demands with precision. It was a miracle he could hear the waitress over yet another heated debate over if meat cutlets or fried shrimp is the best sparked by the usual pair of patrons.

In a blink of an eye, it was inching towards closing time. Everyone who had their weekly fill came and went. As soon as the last customer left the store, the Master got to work on preparing the last dish of the night: A generous helping of beef stew along with an extra-large to-go container filled with even more beef stew. All of this was for an ancient dragon who could only enter the restaurant by shapeshifting her form into a human. As if on cue, the bell at the front alerted the duo of her arrival and Aletta was about to greet their fiery customer. Except…

“Wow, this place really is western.” An unfamiliar voice full of wonder pulled the Master away from the stew pot. From his side of the barrier, he could see a woman donning a red and blue outfit with two sheathed katanas by her waist. Her appearance kind of reminded him of the traveling swordsman who would always order teriyaki, but for some reason, this swordswoman had a different vibe than his normal customer. “To think the sign on the door was the only thing I could understand in this world…” She let out a content sigh. “Thank goodness it’s for a restaurant of all places. I’m starving!” 

Master’s eyes widen. He glanced at a nearby clock to make sure it was still Saturday. Sure enough, there was only a little under two hours left until he had to close the place up. This woman...isn’t your typical warrior from the other world, isn’t she?

Regardless of this developing revelation, Aletta still greeted her with a “W-Welcome to _Western Restaurant Nekoya_. Please take a seat anywhere it’s empty.” Before heading off to the back to grab a menu and water. It took her a little bit more time than usual just trying to pick which menu she should give her. 

“Here.” She looks up to see the Master handing her a menu with writing she’s seen on the sign outside...the same writing the warrior commented about just minutes ago. Aletta thanked her boss with the assist so now she can serve the lone patron now. 

From his place in the kitchen, the Master keeps an eye on the new face while trying not to overcook the beef stew pool he has on the stove. He could see her saying something to Aletta that made her face red and scamper off to her usual position. As far as he knew, he was the only human from Earth that had access to magic responsible for the weekly trips to the other world thanks to his grandmother. However, the only reason it’s possible was that his grandmother came from this very fantasy world and provided the magic for him. Could it be possible that a human could be randomly transported to this parallel world? He’d had to ask that wise sage Altorius the next time he comes in for pork-loin cutlets. 

Regardless, he should treat her as a customer first and foremost. No matter what her story is, she will be served whatever she desires as long as she has the payment for it. 

Like clockwork, the woman closed her menu. “...I’m ready to order!” She announced. He watched in anticipation as Aletta walked over to take her order. In his mind, he was predicting it would be teriyaki. It’s up to her whether she wants beef or chicken.

“What would you like today?” Aletta asked.

“Let me get...hm…” At the last second, the woman pondered over her order. “Say, you guys wouldn’t happen to serve udon by any chance?” 

The demon girl tilted her head to the side. “Oo-don?” She picked up the menu and flipped through it. Although there are some pictures of their most popular dishes, she still doesn’t have the literacy to comprehend it from front to back. These characters just vaguely resemble the ones written by some of the otherworldly patrons. She looks back up at the warrior woman, “Let me talk to the Master if we have it.”

The patron leans back in her chair with a patient smile. “Sounds good! I can’t wait to see your cute face returning.” That reply got yet another red face out of Aletta. All she could do was hug the menu close to her chest, turn around, and awkwardly power walk into the kitchen where her boss just pulled out a tray of evenly lined up strips of...dough?

“Master, the customer said she wants an order of...oo-don.” She said. She opened up the menu in her hands like she expected the word to pop off the page. She quickly gives up, pushing it aside for safekeeping. She still has a long way to go if she wants to be an efficient waitress. “I didn’t recognize it on the menu before. Is it really okay to give her something like this?

The Master listens to Aletta’s concerns as he gathers the necessary ingredients needed to make this meal. He looks up at her with a confidant smile, “Don’t worry, I know exactly what she wants.” He explains before walking over to the partition separating the kitchen from the dining area. “Excuse me, miss.” He calls out to the sole patron. “Do you have any specific desires for your bowl?”

He could see her face lost in thought, debating on what kind of udon she’s craving tonight. He caught a glimpse of some drool peeking out at the corner of her mouth before it was quickly wiped away with her thumb. “Oh...I just can’t seem to decide. I’ll just have to leave it up to you, Master!”

“Very well.” Master gives a courteous nod. “It will take about a half-hour to complete. Can I get you anything in the meantime?”

“I’ll take your finest sake, please.” 

“As you wish.” The Master instructed Aletta on where to find the sake before giving his full attention to what he hopes will be the best bowl of udon this customer will ever have. 

He began by pouring _dashi_ , rice wine, sugar, and soy sauce into a small saucepan to boil. As he waited, he worked on chopping up the long green onions diagonally. He didn’t have to do it at a certain angle, but the presentation of udon is very important. Next comes the fish cake, specifically the one with the iconic pink swirl in the middle, also being chopped at an angle. Like clockwork, the saucepan began to boil. The Master used a ladle to pour some into a small saucer plate for him to taste how the soup part of the meal was coming out. Hmm...it needed a little something. Could it need more soy sauce? No...it needs salt. A little pinch of it won’t ruin the soup. After stirring it in and giving it another taste test, he knew for certain that a small pinch of it changed it for the better. It’s only the base of the soup, but the smell coming from the pan is just absolutely delectable.

He turns down the heat on the saucepan momentarily so he can add a bigger pot full of water to start boiling as well. He didn’t put a cover on it just yet, so in the meantime, he needs to finish up cutting what’s left to be chopped up. The parsley and scallion had to be diced up so it could linger on the surface of the soup. Finally, he trimmed some beef off and sliced those pieces into thirds. He cranked the heat on the boiling water and finally covered it up. It didn’t take long after that for the bubbles to form. 

The essential ingredient for this bowl waits for him in the fridge. Udon noodles are made of wheat flour, so it needs to be prepared separately with the rest of the dough every week. He thanked his past self for cutting it up and making sure the noodles were somewhat at equal length. He plopped those bad boys into the water and began counting to sixty.

As he reached the twenty mark, he began preparing the crucial ingredient: the beef. With a little vegetable oil and the chopped up onions from before, the smell of it all reached the hungry warrior. He gave the oil and onions time to settle in the low heat as he finally reached sixty. He grabbed a colander to drain the noodles as he finished up the meal. It all started to come together as meat hit the pan. It didn’t take long for him to add sugar and soy sauce to it once the beef was browned and the onions tender. 

“...Yep, this should do it.” The Master told himself, turning off the heat once the sauce caramelized. 

The drained noodles were first to go in the bowl with the soup accompanying it soon after. After topping it with the beef, fish cake, scallions, and parsley in that order...the meal was ready to be served. He called his waitress to deliver the soup at once.

The samurai’s iron-will crumbled the moment she smelled it in the kitchen. She was so excited for the udon to finish that she didn’t realize she completed her bottle of sake until that cute waitress replaced it with another. The hungry warrior tore her eyes away from the action so she could read the label on the bottle for once. 

Ah, so this is from the Niigata Prefecture. The owner sure knows how to treat his customers to some fine alcohol. When was the last time she drifted in Japan anyways? Better yet, when was the last time she properly sat down for a meal she didn’t have to hunt for? It’s quiet, it’s warm, and it feels so homely. The modern aesthetic contrasting the medieval architecture of this world almost made her think she was hallucinating had she not knocked on the very solid lone door that sat untouched in the middle of the woods. Could this be a Reality Marble, she wondered? 

The ringing of a bell brought her back to her senses. The mystery behind this modern restaurant could wait for now. Her main priority is to devour that steaming hot bowl of udon heading her way. She licked her lips, waiting to pounce on it the moment it’s on the table.

“Here you go! One bowl of beef udon!” Aletta told the customer. With a polite bow and a, “Enjoy your meal!” She returns to her station. 

She couldn’t get any luckier, could she? This high-quality bowl has _beef_ in it? If her mouth was leaking before, then it’s certainly a waterfall by now. 

She clapped her hands together. “Thank you for the food!” With that, she can finally get to the meat of the meal...and everything else, of course. 

The moment she took the first bite, the flavors seemed to explode on her tongue. It was nothing she’s ever tasted before! Everything was cooked perfectly! Not to mention the presentation of the udon...it almost made her feel bad about having to ruin it. Almost. Once the first bite was made, the rest was history. Did she even take a breather in between the bites and slurps?

The udon was finished in record time. The warrior couldn’t help but let out a sigh once she put the bowl down. She was left to contemplate and think now that she had something in her stomach. It...wasn’t enough, she concluded. She ate it too quickly, and now she’s mourning the loss of the heavenly soup on her tongue. Would it hurt to ask for seconds?

As if someone was reading her mind, another bowl of beef udon landed on the table. She looked up at Aletta with wide eyes. “Eh? Seriously? I didn’t ask for-”

“Don’t worry, this one’s on me.” The Master calls out from the kitchen. “Dig in, by all means. You looked like you enjoyed it.”

The warrior picked up her chopsticks. “...Thanks for the food.” She said it in a whisper, fearing that if she said it any louder the dream will break. 

She didn’t know how long she sat there for, how many bowls of udon she consumed, or when she took a breather or took a sip of water or sake. No matter how many noodles or beef she consumed, it was just as breathtaking as the very first bite. She didn’t want this nirvana to end, but sadly all good things must come to an end the moment the udon noodle on deck, not to mention the back-up pile, was diminished for her endless stomach.

Musashi let out a sigh of relief as she leaned back into her chair. She patted her hands over her stomach. It’s safe to say she’s full and completely satisfied. “That was good~.” She vocalized to no one in particular. As much as she wanted to sit there and succumb to a food coma (which never happened before), it would be best to leave the premise as it’s inching closer to quitting time. 

She got up and stopped just a few inches away from the door. She had to take off her weapons when she needed to sit down, now she had to reattach and adjust before she ventured back into the great unknown. 

“Thank you for coming tonight.” The Master said behind her, she peered over her shoulder to see both the owner and the waitress standing there. Another patron, a beautiful red-hair lady with horns similar to the waitress, occasionally glances at them as she eats what looks like a stew. She must’ve entered when her eyes were on the prize.

The samurai turned around and bowed to the employees. “And thank you for ruining udon for me!” She said with a smile. “During all my adventures, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered something like this. Are you exclusive only to this world or…” 

“It’s...a weird story.” The Owner filled in for her. “I’ll be able to tell you if you pay your tab and come back next week.”

“Next week, huh?” She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. “In all honesty, Master, who knows if I’ll be able to come back next week.”

“Well, the restaurant opens in various locations. I can’t explain how, but you’ll be able to sit down for another udon buffet no matter where you are in the world.”

Musashi sighed. “It’s...more complicated than that. Here.” She tosses him a bag of coins, the weight of it caught him by surprise. “I don’t think I’ll be in this world any longer, but I don’t really have a say in that matter. If by some miracle I do, I’ll definitely come in for round two.”

“I see…” The Master placed the bag of money on the bar table, causing it to make a metallic thud on impact so he can bow back, his waitress mirroring him. “Still, I should thank you for your patronage. Normally I don’t do this, but considering this is our first time meeting each other, I would like to know what your name is...if you don’t mind.”

“It’s fine, I don’t mind it at all.” She said, waving a dismissive hand. “My formal name is Shinmen Musashi no Kami Fujiwara no Harunobu, but you probably know me better as Miyamoto Musashi.” She paused, waiting for some kind of reaction from the two. “...Not the Musashi you might know, but…” She stopped herself with a sigh, shaking her head. ”Forget it. It's probably just as complicated.” 

The restaurant owner nodded along in solidarity. Guess neither of them are showing their entire hand here, it seems. “Very well, Musashi-san. I hope you will visit _Western Restaurant Nekoya_ again in the future. I’ll be sure to prepare some extra whenever you return.”

“Looking forward to it, Owner!” With that, the mysterious woman made her exit. 

He looks back at the pouch he left on the table. Now that his unusual customer left, he can have Aletta take a gander at counting up the amount. What he didn’t expect upon opening the bag was the stack of Japanese Yen coins greeting him. He could see some 500 yen coins sticking out in the pile, but hopefully it’s enough to cover everything.

The Master thought he’s seen it all when it comes to encounters in this fantasy world. It looks like this other world still has a few tricks up its sleeve, it seems.

~

It’s been several weeks since Musashi first arrived at the restaurant. There hasn’t been a trace of her since. The Master even brought her up in casual conversations with some of the other patrons, obviously withholding her name, but it didn’t seem like she made contact with any of them. Maybe she’s ‘not in this world anymore’ as she promised. It didn’t sound like she was dying, but he couldn’t help but be muddled over the missing pieces. 

The lunch rush had just ended. The current Champion Lizardman just left the store with his containers full of omelette rice. There hasn’t been any bickering over which meal is the best...yet. Then again, Ms. Mince Meat and Mr. Fried Shrimp haven’t made their weekly appearance yet. 

Master hardly had a chance to revel in the calm before the bell by the door greeted the next customer. 

His ears couldn’t help but perk up when he heard a familiar voice saying, “...ace is amazing! They serve the best udon here! Oh, I’m so glad it’s a Saturday.” Well, speak of the samurai and she shall appear. By the looks of it, she even brought a friend along! Going by their modern clothes, it’s not a bad guess to say they have a similar story to Musashi.

“Welcome to _Western Restaurant Nekoya_!” Aletta greeted them as they sat down. “Will it be udon again this time?”

Musashi nodded enthusiastically. “Two beef bowls, please! And your finest sake as well!” 

“Very well, two beef bowls coming right up!”

From what he can see through the partition, the new face seemed concerned about something Musashi said. While he couldn’t see the warrior’s face, the dismissive wave of her hand. Newcomer’s shoulders slumped in resignation before starting a conversation he didn’t really pay attention to. This person clearly is in the right hands, he thought to himself. Time to start making the best udon he could whip up. 

His grandfather was right, there really is no telling who’s coming through that door in this fantasy world.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: Dashi is Japanese soup stock which is a very vital ingredient and has been part of Japanese culinary for centuries. 
> 
> Here's the recipe I based the udon off of: https://www.justonecookbook.com/beef-udon/  
> ~
> 
> I guess at this point it's safe to say that this is the first story to my collection of crossover FGO fics titled henceforth, "The RNG of Ritsuka's Summons." which may or may not sound familiar depending on who's actually reading this. As you probably know already, it'll primarily focus on FGO fics as well as another series that'll intertwine, hence the RNG in the title. Could be a snapshot or a full-blown long fic, that's why I'm making it a collection of fics instead of one standalone fic like other unnecessary big crossover fics with a mile-long rap sheet of tags. I'm not that much of a heathen.
> 
> It's kinda a weird fic to kick-off with since they only appear at the end, but I'll be sure to make it up to you with the next fic of the collection. Let's just say it involves a certain genius caster and...you'll just have to wait and hope until then. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this fic and hopefully it could be a gateway to more actual Shokudou fics that have real substance to them. 
> 
> My tumblr, as always, is agent-yolk-writes. Please give me a follow and don't be afraid to drop an ask too. It's been very lonely over there. It's gotten so bad that someone asked for a Diarmuid HC only to tell me it wasn't for me. You can't really recover from that.
> 
> And, again, happy anniversary Fate/Grand Order. I promise I'll make more fics that isn't in the anniversary window, I swear.


End file.
